Toujours pur: Pureblooded tales
by ArchArtistWriter
Summary: A collection of short stories based on personal histories of various pureblooded characters WIP


Here begins a series of short stories based on the lives of the Purebloods we know of and their ancestors. Each story is very different, with a different setting and characterisation, unless stated otherwise.  
  
Enjoy!  
  
*****  
  
A esposa duas vezes amando//The twice loving wife  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Being a Pureblood in England was a different thing entirely. It was something that Narcissa was beginning to loathe.  
  
The pure bloods of mainland Europe - where her line of Black had originated from - for example, could either be seen as centuries behind or centuries ahead. They got respect from the ordinary, dirty-blooded wizards for being pure and living up to their responsibility, not from hexing the dirty- blooded or insulting them.  
  
Here, no one seemed to care about responsibility or even what it meant being a real wizard, yet alone a real pure-blood: all they seemed to know was how to abuse their house-elves inappropiately, drink expensive wine out of embossed goblets and whine foolishly about the state of the wizarding world today, of which they knew nothing of, stuffed like exotic animals, in their zoo-like, family manors.  
  
England, with it's terrible food, terrible weather, and terrible house- elves, revolted her. The only English thing she liked was Severus, and he wasn't even English: he just didn't have an accent from the Old Country.  
  
She didn't know why she liked Severus. Perhaps because he spoke Portugese (she was never sure how well, because Severus spoke a language as if it were his own, whether he truly knew it or not, and you found yourself simply understanding him, rather than trying to listen), perhaps because he was so ugly, or because they both looked at the world through a sneer and a snort yet were in denial of doing so.  
  
Whatever the reason, Severus was one of the few things that she liked about England and her family approved of her knowing such a 'sensible boy with an unusual lack of frivolities which so many young, pure-blooded men carry today' and from what she understood, his family (or what was left of it) approved of her too. He never elaborated, but she got the feeling that that was so whenever she visited his home.  
  
Today, he was at her home. It was the Summer holidays - a time which she always hated because of how pasty the English sun made her feel, instead of liberated and wild as the Portugese sun did - and they were in the back room, with Severus sitting cross-legged on the floor and reading, Narcissa slumped in a couch like the sullen Portugese princess that she was and Andromeda - both fiery and cool - lying on a settee on her back, an arm dangling so that her fingers touched the floor.  
  
Narcissa rang for a house-elf: oh, how she hated the English family home! It wasn't so much that it was dark - the manor in Portugal was as well - but it was the way the heat collected within the rooms and turned her brain to mush which made her so annoyed.  
  
She rang for the house-elf again.  
  
Andromeda by now, had craned her neck into an arc, so that she could see if any house-elf were coming. Severus did not seem to have noticed or remained completely unperturbed by it.  
  
"Why are they always so slow!" She demanded, her accent irritating her (if Bellatrix were here, she would have been teased mericlessly).  
  
"What is it that you want?" Severus said finally, marking his place in the book and looking at her steadily. Anyone else would have felt unnerved by his gaze, but Narcissa knew it, liked it and didn't mind it at all.  
  
"Entertainment." Andromeda piped up: Severus grinned a quick, wolfish grin at the darker blonde girl, before turning back to Narcissa who scowled. He smirked and she threw a pillow at him which he dodged.  
  
"What is it that you want?" He asked again.  
  
Why, she didn't know, but Narcissa felt her throat prickling and tears beginning to form in her eyes. "I don't know." It was probably her monthlies: Bellatrix had told her how some women got the 'weepies' as she called them.  
  
"She wants a fucking!" Andromeda screeched, then hid her face under a cushion and brought up her legs to her chest, rocking slightly to and fro on her back; Severus laughed out loud. Narcissa grinned and wondered where Andromeda had learnt that: Nanny wouldn't like it, neither would Papa, but Mama would have the same reaction as Severus had if she ever heard it herself.  
  
"It's Bellatrix' fault," Severus said, trying not to grin. "She thinks everyone is the same as her: she's a bad influence on Andromeda."  
  
Narcissa laughed as well at that.  
  
Finally, an old, rather portly, female house-elf came trundling along, chest heaving and perspiration trickling down her face. "Yes mistress?" She asked politely.  
  
"May I have something cool to drink?" Narcissa asked. "And something for the other two as well." She accidentally caught Severus' eye, who stifled a laugh and returned to his book. Andromencha was still rocking.  
  
When the house-elf left, there was silence.  
  
"Why is England so boring!" Narcissa exclaimed.  
  
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Narcissa was in the year above Severus, but thankfully, they were in the same house. He made her stay at Hogwarts a little more bearable, though as time went by, she wondered if she was taking more from their friendship than she should: she was never sure if she made life at Hogwarts more bearable for him.  
  
Andromeda was in the same year as Severus, and in the same house as well. Bellatrix - of course - had been very pleased with this: it meant she could deploy her friends and the nervous younger years to watch out for her siblings when she was too tired to do so herself. Older sisters were like that.  
  
There were no other Blacks in Slytherin, which was a good thing, as far as Narcissa was concerned: her English cousins - Sirius and Regulus, annoyed her far too much already, and it wasn't just their names either: Sirius was an obnoxious, spoilt and tempermental brat who had a habit of annoying Andromeda - which few people would be able to tell as Andromeda neither spoke much, nor showed much of her emotions - and a distinct lack of tact. Regulus was needlessly pompous, though rather clever at times, and with a very bad stutter which Andromeda constantly giggled at.  
  
To her intense relief, Sirius had been put in Gryffindor and Regulus in Ravenclaw. Although Bellatrix never seemed so fond of her younger sisters, she did at least try to be a good eldest sister, but Sirius didn't seem to bother with Regulus unless the offender happened to be someone he didn't like either: he brushed his little brother aside far more than was likeable, though at times, Narcissa couldn't help but empathise with him - Regulus could be a terrible bore and such a whiner sometimes.  
  
Everything about Hogwarts revolted her: she would often wonder why she hadn't been tutored at home. She couldn't stand the noise that the other students made and the stuffy heat of summer made her want to weep.  
  
She did, however, like the midnight walks that she would take - being an insomniac since she had first arrived in Hogwarts - down the cool halls, and talking to the ghosts (her favourites being the Bloody Baron, who still refused to tell her where the bloodstains had come from, and Sir Nick, who reminded her of a ghostly, adult Regulus) and knocking rudely on the visors of the suits of armour, who would open up for her and allow her to conceal some new found treasureof hers in them.  
  
It was during one midnight walk that she first met Severus, in truth: she was taking a route that would have taken her to the library and had bumped into him. She recognised him then as a first year - a fellow Slytherin, to boot - and had began to scold him about being out of bed so late.  
  
"But so are you," he said calmly, eyes dancing in the darkness. When she blushed, he had started berating her, mimicking her exact tone and stance as he did so. They both shared stifled giggles.  
  
She could remember that night and the following conversation perfectly:  
  
Narcissa: What are you doing here so late?  
  
Severus: (grins) I am walking.  
  
Narcissa: (raises an eyebrow) no, you're not.... I meant why are you out here so late?  
  
Severus: I couldn't sleep.  
  
Narcissa: (raises both eyebrows) oh. Why don't you count sheep?  
  
Severus: (gives a small laugh) I don't like sheep.  
  
Narcissa: Why not count anything else?  
  
Severus: (humor is showing in eyes. Puts on look of mock horror) anything else will give me nightmares!  
  
Narcissa: No it will not. You are just being silly. You are only a first year: you should be doing what I say.  
  
Severus: I am only a first year when there are more second years about. When there aren't, I'm just like you.  
  
Narcissa: You sound like a philospher.  
  
Severus: Oh dear.  
  
(There is a silence).  
  
Narcissa: Where are you going?  
  
Severus: To the Owlery.  
  
Narcissa: Why?  
  
Severus: To see the view. I never have much time to look at it properly.  
  
Narcissa: Ah.  
  
Severus: Yes. Do you wish to come or will you go back to bed like a good second-year?  
  
Narcissa: I think I will come.  
  
And so she had. She had gone with him to the Owlery and watched the Sun come up and heard the Dawn Chorus. For her, it came a year too late: now in her second year, her hate of Hogwarts was as great as ever but her hate of England was beginning to recede: England couldn't help some of the people living on her.  
  
They had gone back to bed quietly, no silly half-good byes or promises. Just bed.  
  
For the first time since she had arrived in Hogwarts, Narcissa actually got some sleep.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
By December that year, they had developed a routine of sorts between them. They would wander about the halls at night, sometimes meeting up with each other as they crossed paths, sometimes not. But the understanding gradually blossomed into a genuine friendship and Narcissa found someone to talk to.  
  
They began to talk to each other more and more during the day as well: they took it in turns to bring some breakfast to the abandoned Slytherin common room and flick through the Daily Prophet for future spouses or future careers (Narcissa could never tell if Severus was joking when he'd rip out adertisements for sandwich makers), at first, awkwardly making half-hearted biting comments, but eventually settling into casual sneering remarks and snorts.  
  
Bellatrix, two years above them, found her way into their duo, a dark mother-figure slouching in a chair by a sooty fireplace, lazily watching over the two younger ones. She, like Narcissa, missed the politeness of Portugese breakfasts - loud, but necessarily so; none of the stupid, over- excited calls of students there. In Portugal, you were loud because you had to be; here, it seemed (to Bellatrix) that everyone was loud just to give her a headache.  
  
With her came Andromeda who was too shy to be able to stand Slytherin House at breakfast without her older sisters or Severus there. She would spend the mornings dancing and humming a folk tune, weaving in and out of the space which later on in the day would be denied to her, stolen by crowds of Slytherins.  
  
Theirs became a firmly established foursome. Bellatrix - never shy about these things - had breakfast ordered for them (Narcissa privately preferred sneaking breakfast from the Hall to the Common room, but she never liked arguing with Bellatrix: it wasn't proper to argue with your older sister) from the kitchens. She and Andromeda would spend some time in the Hall to start off with, to ease suspicions, before scooting down to the Slytherin common room to join Narcissa and Severus.  
  
At times, Bellatrix would wonder why she was there. The spiteful comments that flew between her younger sister and the Old Country pure-blood (as she liked to think of him: Lucius had come up with that one) at times made her laugh and she would join in, but sometimes they made her angry, frustrated even. Even so, she tried to hold such feelings down as she had, after all, invited herself to their meetings, not vice versa.  
  
By her third year, Narcissa was beginning to see something in Hogwarts that could sustain her: she cruelly sneered and mocked the other students in her private sessions with Severus and Andromeda, particularly the ignorant and aspiring dirty-blooded young warlocks. Severus seemed to find it amusing and Andromeda would laugh only if Severus made an additional mimicry, which he was extraordinarily good at.  
  
She wasn't acknowledging just this new change either; there were the usual physical ones (her figure was becoming more womanly and she was much taller) but there was also a change in perception.  
  
It was one afternoon when she was returning from History of Magic, that she discovered that Severus was being bullied.  
  
There wasn't a large crowd, but a growing one, attracted by the commotion. She heard raised voices, one particularly agitated and others scornful. She warily approached the source of the noise.  
  
Severus was being hassled by - she gave an inward groan - her own cousin and his friend, James Potter, one of the formerly titled Merchant class families of the wizarding world (a class where the purity of blood counted for nothing, but appearances mattered far more). They had something of his that was being tossed up between them as they roughly handled it and laughed: Severus had given up chasing after it and was waiting, getting more and more angry, for the object's return.  
  
"Give it here!" He cried out at one point. "It's mine!"  
  
"Oh we know that, we're not stupid," said Sirius in reply, tossing the thing back to James who suddenly attempted to open it. As he did so, Severus positively screamed.  
  
"You can't do that!" He shouted finally, making for James yet again. "You can't--"  
  
Sirius pushed him back and some of the nearby students laughed. Severus kept on reaching out for whatever it was until Sirius caught his hand and bent his fingers back (Narcissa winced: Sirius had often done such a thing to Regulus).  
  
Severus bit hard on Sirius' hand and, as her cousin gasped in agony, strode forwards and tried to grab the thing out of James' hands before he opened it completely; but it was too late.  
  
The contents of what Narcissa realised was a small bag, burst open, spraying dust and glittering particles, bits of twig and stones everywhere. James coughed and laughed, finally tossing the empty bag at Severus' feet who recoiled from it in horror.  
  
"Don't you want it now?" James grinned cheekily. Sirius glared at Severus, as if it were his fault that he had swallowed most of the dust.  
  
"You idiots, don't you realise what you've done?!" Severus screamed.  
  
"Uh-oh," Sirius gave a malicious grin. "He's going loose!"  
  
The rather large crowd laughed at that and, thoroughly shamed, Severus ran away from them, down to the Slytherin Common room.  
  
Narcissa hurried after him.  
  
When she finally made her way down there, she was very surprised to see Severus sitting on a ledge and crying quite loudly into his arms, knees tucked up under.  
  
"Severus?" She whispered, her voice piercing throught he silence (everyone else was at lessons). She had never seen him cry or look remotely distressed. "Severus?"  
  
He seemed to quieten down a bit. "What?" He said, voice muffled. "What do you want?"  
  
Taken aback, Narcissa said helplessly, "I'm your friend."  
  
Severus seemed to stop for a moment, then raised his face and turned slightly. She took it as a positive sign, so off she went across the room towards him and put an arm around his shoulders. He sniffed and accepted a hankerchief.  
  
"I hate it here." He said finally.  
  
"So do I." She nodded. He nodded as well.  
  
"They didn't have to do that; they could have done anything else but that, but that's what they wanted to do... it isn't fair." He sniffed.  
  
Narcissa held him tighter.  
  
"I can't sleep you know."  
  
"Neither can I."  
  
He was silent. "I know it sounds stupid, but I sometimes think Mama was right about Hogwarts; I sometimes think it's cursed. I only like it when it's empty and when I'm awake. It scares me the rest of the time."  
  
Narcissa couldn't think of anything to say to that.  
  
"I can't eat either. I feel sick whenever I do."  
  
Narcissa could understand that: she didn't eat much in Hogwarts either, not that it mattered. Bellatrix would sometimes say in spite that Narcissa's puppyfat was enough for her. It was cruel, but Narcissa found it rather funny.  
  
They sat there on the ledge, holding on to each other (Narcissa couldn't recall when Severus' arms had snaked around her waist) and rocking slightly. They stayed there for what seemed an eternity until their silence was interrupted.  
  
Bellatrix and a male-friend were the source of the interruption. Bellatrix seemed somehow more alive than Narcissa ever remembered her looking and walked differently with an arm interlocked with her male companion's.  
  
When the couples both saw each other, Narcissa recognised the man immediately. This was Lucius Malfoy, a handsome, well admired young man within the family circles, but who Narcissa privately considered something or a ponce (as Sirius once said and for once - she had agreed with him). However, that was a while ago, and Lucius had been an awkward, confused and haughty little thing, at times genuinely shy and a bit reserved.  
  
He smiled and cocked an eyebrow sardonically at the two. Severus sniffed quietly and looked up as well. He regarded the much older boy carefully then went back to looking at his arms.  
  
"Narcissa." Lucius said. "What's happened?"  
  
Narcissa felt herself blush. She felt something akin to guilt gnaw at her stomach; she was supposed to be Severus' friend and yet she knew nothing about what had truly happened.  
  
"I don't know," she said truthfully.  
  
"Ah." Lucius disentangled himself from Bellatrix and strode confidentally over to Severus. Narcissa didn't loosen her hold on Severus, so Lucius had to sit closer to her friend to look at him. Bellatrix mouthed irritated questions at Narcissa, most of which Narcissa could only shrug at.  
  
Preoccupied with Bellatrix' questioning her, she turned startled to hear Lucius whispering in some strange tongue to her friend and even more surprised to hear Severus talking back. Eventually, Lucius managed to coax Severus into raising his head and loosening his hold on Narcissa. The final shock for her, was when Severus blushed and smiled at the older boy and let go of Narcissa all together.  
  
Apparently sastisfied, Lucius smiled warmly and got up, saying something else in the strange tongue, to which Severus laughed.  
  
"Shall we go elsewhere, Bellatrix?" He asked the elder Black.  
  
Bemused, Bellatrix nodded, and took his hand, looking back at Severus, and then at Lucius with a puzzled and mildly curious look.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
As Narcissa grew older, her family spent more and more time in England, getting all geared up for the marriages of their three daughters.  
  
First, Bellatrix was betrothed, much to Narcissa's surprise, to a young Rodolphus Lestrange: he was handsome, in his way, but quiet and unsettling, given to sudden rages. Narcissa found his name hillarious, and, again to her surprise - Bellatrix laughed with her every time it was mentioned. Narcissa began to understand some of her sister's unsettled behaviour and strange aloofness of the past: she had wanted something to live for and now she had - she would put all her energies into being a good wife. Narcissa actually felt genuinely happy for her.  
  
Lucius Malfoy, was often on the scene, charming and mildly sardonic; confident yet expressing humility. Narcissa did not think of him so much as a fop. Her respect for him increased as she grew older and in truth, the same for him was true.  
  
But what she liked Lucius the most for - more so than his contrast of characters - was his ability to make Severus laugh.  
  
He didn't speak at Severus, but to him; he didn't just listen to the Old Country pure blood, but actually understood him as well. By the time Severus was in sixth year, Lucius (still unbetrothed) and he were good friends, though their apparent friendship was constantly derided by the ever charming Sirius Black who Narcissa thought was being a bit of a hypocrite: if he hung around with a coward like Peter Pettigrew and a stupid show-off like James Potter, he couldn't say much about Lucius.  
  
And Narcissa began to notice other things as well. Severus, Lucius, Rodolphus, Bellatrix and other Slytherins would talk a lot with each other about politics. Particularly about the dirty-blooded and about a dark figure especially interested in such things who called himself Lord Vodemort, (Narcissa had heard of this man from her parents occasional chats but personally felt little about him). Narcissa would sometimes be interested by what they had to say and their conflicting points, but often felt herself feeling rather frustrated by the lack of imagination they seemed to have - even Bellatrix.  
  
She did notice how Severus would listen far more than he spoke and she also noticed how much respect Lucius seemed to pay to whatever it was that he had to say. When Lucius gave someone respect, everyone did and Narcissa could see that Severus benefited from this.  
  
But then, on her last day as a Hogwarts student, something happened of which there had been no warning for her to notice.  
  
Privately, quite honestly, Lucius Malfoy asked her to marry him.  
  
What had she said?:  
  
Narcissa: (tries to hide confusion) May I ask why?  
  
Lucius: (frowns) Well... Because... I would make a good husband for you and you would make a good wife... for me.  
  
Narcissa: Oh?  
  
Lucius: Why, yes. I mean, you're very mature, you're very sensible; you'd pick up on things that I am much too obtuse to notice--  
  
Narcissa: It is the bleaching sun rays that do it.  
  
Lucius: (vaguely amused) Oh yes, quite. You can curb me of that awful habit - you know, sunbathing.  
  
Narcissa: (gives a small and dramatic shudder, then giggles) I intend to.  
  
(There is an expectant pause)  
  
Lucius: Do you accept my proposal, then?  
  
Narcissa: (smiles) Yes, Lucius. Yes, Lucius: I do.  
  
The first person she had told was - of course - Severus. They sat there in the room, sitting on opposite sides of a table to one another, Narcissa trying to find a way to communicate with him what was on her mind.  
  
"Lucius asked me to marry me." She said finally. Severus froze and looked at her.  
  
"What did you say?"  
  
A slight smile crept on her face in spite of herself. "I said yes," she murmured and looked at her friend.  
  
He nodded and looked back the table. "Do you want more coffee?" He asked eventually.  
  
"No, thank you." Narcissa made to get up, but sat back down again, no longer at ease. She leaned closer to Severus and asked in an undertone "Is everything alright?"  
  
Again he nodded, not looking at her. "You'll have to spend most of your time in England, though: I thought you wanted to go back home." Narcissa blinked. She had indeed, but now...  
  
"I won't belong there; I don't belong here. Here is better though, because I have my sisters, my family, my husband, and..." here, she leaned in closer and added in a conspirational whisper, "I am very close to you!" She smiled and to her intense relief, Severus smiled too. At ease, Narcissa kissed him on the lips as they had as children and Severus stroked her hair. They Eskimo kissed and giggled.  
  
"Hm. We like to pretend that we're mature, but we're no better than first years," Severus chuckled. "Go on; go and tell your family. They should be happy."  
  
With a small squeal, Narcissa leapt up, hugged her friend tightly and literally flew out of the room.  
  
Her parents seemed pleased that their middle daughter had made such good match, but a little worried, nonetheless, about the man she was marrying. "Young men these days," her Papi said, "do not think of their families anymore: they are too arrogant - even the best of them... even your Lucius Malfoy..." She didn't know what they would have said about Severus. Perhaps they would have liked him better, or perhaps not. You could never tell with parents.  
  
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Narcissa Black and Lucius Malfoy were married three months after she left Hogwarts. Andromeda was her chief bridesmaid; Severus (to nearly everyone's surprise) was Lucius' best man. Sirius was not invited because by that time, he had broken his mother's heart and left the family.  
  
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Narcissa liked being Narcissa Malfoy. She liked being married to Lucius Malfoy. For the first year of her marriage, married life was treating her well. Lucius had been right: he was a very good husband for her.  
  
But within the family she had just left, anxiety mounted.  
  
Quiet, peaceful, sometimes hot and sometimes cold Andromeda had become engaged to a dirty-blooded wizard, Ted Tonks.  
  
Narcissa had never heard of him and was just as shocked as her parents and the remaining Black clan were. What was even worse, was the fact that Andromeda was thought to be betrothed in the future to Barty Crouch jnr, as a sign of reconciliation between the two very different pure-blooded families.  
  
"Why?" She had asked Andromecha. "You are spoiling everything for the family."  
  
Andromeda looked miserable and before she knew it, self-pity, pride and disgust at herself had overcome Narcissa and their meeting had ended with Andromeda consoling an extremely bitter and angry Narcissa.  
  
In many a way, however, Andromeda proved to be something of a relief for Narcissa: Andromeda, unlike Bellatrix, was not mad.  
  
Bellatrix now terrified Narcissa with her incredible energy and zest for life, though it would be more correct to say death. Before, Narcissa had thought that Bellatrix was happy to be married, to have a challenge for her, but now her younger sister realised that it was not her marriage that made her happy, but Lord Voldemort.  
  
Narcissa discovered that, amongst Lucius and Rodolphus, Bellatrix had been initiated into Lord Voldemort's following around the time of her betrothal. Bellatrix, it proved, was a fanatical and devoted follower, losing her essential cynicsm to make way for a loyalty bordering onto insanity. To her horror, Narcissa found that speaking to Rodolphus made things no better: far from curbing his wife, Rodolphus seemed to be encouraging her: Narcissa could no longer stand to be in the same room as them; they made her feel nauseous.  
  
Around a year after her marriage, Severus finished at Hogwarts and she was able to see more of him. She appreciated the opportunity to talk to him greatly, and rather wished that he would confide in her too, but she knew there were a few things he still kept from her.  
  
Severus became a regular visitor to the Malfoy Estates at the same time as her husband was becoming more and more distant; Lucius would spend more time running after Lord Voldemort, committing atoricities that she read about in the papers for his cause. She wondered if Lucius' madness was worse than Bellatrix': with Lucius, you simply couldn't tell.  
  
Although to her, he remained much the same, though perhaps more willing to indulge in the pleasures of married life when he was with her than before, she still sometimes felt as if she didn't know him. The contrasts that were Lucius Malfoy, which she had once found so delightful, only sought to confuse her and drive her to insanity. If not for Severus, she would have become a muggle-hating recluse, much like her Aunt.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The gossip first started to reach her ears around the time when Narcissa discovered she was pregnant and when Regulus was executed on the Dark Lord's - as his faithful Death Eaters called him - orders. When she first heard it, Narcissa was incredulous and thought of it as a one-off, but, as suspicious people tend to do, she began to notice how everyone seemed to want to know how she reacted whenever Severus Snape was mentioned.  
  
Apparently, she was having a lurid affair with her childhood friend. When Andromeda carefully explained this to her weary older sister, Narcissa couldn't help laughing like a madwoman. It delighted her to think that her fellow women, with so little to do but whore themselves to the Dark Lord, would start such silly and malicious gossip. To think she had once thought them all so dignified and suave!  
  
Once she had stopped laughing, she had had to admit that it must have seemed suspicious that whilst her husband was away, Severus came to visit her so often  
  
What did puzzle Narcissa far more, though was that Lucius never seemed perturbed in the least by it (but then again, he was a man), for surely he would have heard? When she mentioned it to him, he had laughed several bouts of broken laughter, undoubtedly amused, and remained chuckling for most of the day.  
  
She could never tell Severus though, not directly; but in their own little ways, the two friends informed each other and took as much amusement in it as they would have done as children.  
  
As time went by, Narcissa grew used to Lucius' newfound loyalty to Lord Voldemort and grew rest assured that he himself was not having an affair. When she was sure of her pregnancy, she had expressed her wish that the child should be a girl and was pleased when Lucius seemed to genuinely agree with her.  
  
"You don't have to worry so much about worm-eating, scabby knees or falls from trees, do you, with girls?" He had remarked, somewhat amused. "And I find them to be genuinely sensible creatures - their period of silliness comes later but boys tend to be silly for a lot longer."  
  
"From 5 to 45?" Narcissa had teased in reply.  
  
Lucius had laughed. "Come now, we're not all that bad, surely?"  
  
However, once again, her life was soon put into turmoil: her husband and best friend would often come back to the manor looking old and tired, sometimes bloody, sometimes pale: over time, the unreadable black eyes of her friend that had once been often lit with good humour, became completely unfathomable, cold and deep. Lucius began to spend far more time outside the family home and began to correspond with Narcissa via letters, something which he had never done before. Sometimes, when he was at home in the manor, she would find him and Severus arguing at the top of their voices in the same language she had heard her husband use to comfort Severus in school (by now, she had learned that it was a common Russian dialect) and began to wonder what else this Lord Voldemort, with whome she had once agreed on a few of his principles before, was going to take from her.  
  
As the birth of her baby came closer and closer, Narcissa found herself growing wearier and wearier. She found herself now viciously hating dirty- blooded wizards, where once, she had simply been scornful and rather curious. She began to be increasingly spiteul to her house-elves (to whom she often forgot to apologise - and with good reason or they might have asphyxiated through their incessant weeping) and annoyed at Lucius' evasive behaviour.  
  
At first, she had just thought herself paranoid as pregnant women sometimes get, but more and more she began to notice the symptoms in her husband of a man with a very personal secret: an affair.  
  
She began to question Severus relentlessly about her husband's habits when he was away from her: "You are with him always!" She would cry out. "You are my friend! Tell me! You must know!"  
  
And he would stutter in reply that he didn't, that he would try to help; he would try to reassure his childhood friend that her husband didn't hate her, on the contrary...  
  
In utter despair, Narcissa called upon each woman who she trusted or knew to be kindly: her mother, her aunt, both her sisters, Severus' younger sister, Severus' mother and grandmother, even her mother-in law. Each nodded and listened sympahetically or with hard eyes and tried to help her through this difficult time of her life in their own separate ways.  
  
One night she exploded at her husband, terrifying the both of them. He hadn't been paying much attention, evidently, for the collar of his robes were undone and revealing several love-bites, some recent and some a little older. She immediately picked up on this and railed away at him, leaving him speechless.  
  
Her confrontation ended - again - with her sobbing violently and her husband - to her later surprise - doing his best to comfort her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Lucius was home and tired. At present, Narcissa assumed he was having another discussion with Severus, but she wasn't sure if he was in or not (he usually would have greeted her). She sat down in the morning room and read.  
  
When she felt the contractions, she wondered if they were simply false alarms but as they began to occur more and more frequently, she began to panic.  
  
It seemed that no matter how hard she called, none of the house elves heard her. She went through the house calling, and nobody answered.  
  
She found herself making her way upstairs, hurting more and more. Her voice became weaker and her feet dragged. Eventually, she managed to make her way to the room where her baby was conceived.  
  
In no state to truly register how odd it was that the bedroom door was closed, she pushed it open. The daze induced by a hasty departure of her original panic and distress was brought to an abrupt halt as she saw her husband naked - as far as she could see - on the bed, the sheets tangled around him and his partner: they hadn't realised she had opened the door.  
  
They were kissing now and small moans of pleasure were exchanged - that was a language Narcissa could understand and she could feel her heart beat faster, so much that a sharp pain culd be felt jabbing in her chest. Her husband's partner moved his head and turned it round, suddenly freezing when he - yes, it was a he - saw Narcissa at the door.  
  
"Perdoe-me, por favor..." she felt the whispered words come out of her mouth. "Perdoe-me." She didn't know what her eyes looked like now, but there was certainly something like hurt in Severus' usually cold and fathomless ones.  
  
"Narcissa--" Severus began.  
  
She shook her head and backed out of the room.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
It was a false alarm. The real birth took place two days later and to her immense disappointment, her baby was boy. Lucius named him Draco. Narcissa did not really care: the baby was not a girl, not the baby girl she had wanted. She would leave the baby Draco to get love from his father. She didn't want to have anything to do with another failure, another shattering of hope.  
  
Papi - her darling Papi - died three days after her son's birth.  
  
For the next week or so, she remained in bed. Severus was constantly at her side and they exchanged silences that only they could understand. Sometimes they were interrupted by Lucius who seemed to be trying to be a good new father and husband. Sometimes by a house-elf. More often than not, however, they were left alone, usually holding a hand of the other and either smiling slightly at one another or simply gazing steadily.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
And so, here she was. Still alive, still Narcissa. But now, nearing her husband's cell, holding hands with her husband's lover, her own close friend.  
  
When they finally reached his cell, they both looked in on Lucius: only one of them could actually go in and talk to him, though - rules were still rules and they didn't have much time - Narcissa let Severus go in.  
  
He'd finished, and Narcissa stood where Lucius could see her and she smiled at the question in his eyes and nodded.  
  
**************************************************************************** ******  
  
TBC 


End file.
